Pelle Soeborg is da' man!

[Anonymous]

Brian,
I have no plans modeling the eastern United States. On my first trip to the US in 92 I toured the Westen States and I was fascinated with the vastness of the desert and the dusty small towns. The eastern US look a lot like where I live and that is probably why I don't find it as interesting to model as the west.

Pelle

[bbrant]

Pelle -

Excellent work! Have you ever considered modeling the eastern United States?

Thanks for sharing your work with us.
Brian

[virogue]

Hi Pelle,

Nice replies you got here! Confirms what I've just told you ah ah ah!!!
Keep up the quality!

Thank you for the dreams of long distances,

Vianney Roge
France

[mcouvillion]

I just visited Pelle's website. His brain is wired differently than mine! The detail of everything on his layout is phenomenal and his graphic design product artwork is exceptional. I'll bet he is left-handed (many very gifted artists are). Thanks, Pelle, for showing us what can be done.

Mark C.

[bluepuma]

Took a look at the pictures that weren't in the article, and YES, I did like the roads, a bit more gentle up/downs than I usually see in models. The blacktop is in good shape, maybe more so than usual. Some of those dirt roads look really good.

I can admire the modeling, but I see the town, and it's a place to just pass through, not the sort of place I'd want to live. To me, little towns have such a lonely feeling, I couldn't model that, I'd feel it too much. Maybe not so much if I had a house there. I chose to model a place with less of the lonely feeling, the area along the Sunset Line with farmer's fields, gardens, even if my "home" as a child doesn't appear. A home place, not a going somewhere transitional place. My goal was never one of those littel towns, rather far beyond, Tucson, Pheonix, Vegas, or my new home in Illinois. That sort of place was my first stop for Mountain Dew with the U-Haul trailer and car carrier along old Highway 66 route.

[Anonymous]

Pelle talked to me yesterday and was amazed at the over-whelming praise he has received. I've been telling him for years how exceptional he is but he is a very shy and a humble person so he couldn't understand all your kind responses. For those who might wi***o meet Pelle in person I will see to it that he is available in Mojave in late June. Please send me your email if you're interested and I will try to arrange a specific date and place, er, like under the bridge, where you can talk to him for a few hours. Thanks for all of you for the wonderful things you have said to him. His character is as wonderful as his modeling skills.

[jjbmish]

Simply Amazing! Love looking at your layout. Keep the pictures and articles coming.

John

[cwclark]

Pelle, I just got back from looking at the pictures in your website, (may i add, your layout was one of the finest i've ever seen in MR magazine and I've been reading it for a very long time.)..Could you please explain to me how you made that small dirt road in the picture of the train coming through the canyon?...What colors and techniques did you use to build it?..it would be much appreciated because I model the SP / UP through west Texas and it's a lot like the desert in California and would like to model a dirt road similar to yours...Chuck

[CP5415]

Even though I'm not a UP fan, i was really intrigued by Pelle's layout.

My favourite photo is on page 54
The one with the 2 SD70's.
Just the way the road meanders the way it does, it looks like Pelle is standing in California taking the shot, not in Denmark.

Gordon

[mcouvillion]

Pelle's track work is impeccable and did you notice the wires on all the telephone/telegraph poles? With that much wire stretched that tight, I bet he's the only one allowed in the room!!! (Too many folks look with their hands.) I've poured over every picture and each one looks like a full-scale scene. Remarkable! And his engines always have the headlights on, making them look as if they are in motion. I am so impressed I can't stand it. How can someone do such a phenomenal job?

Mark C.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by davekelly

No, Pelle. I thank you for sharing your accomplishments with us and showing me what is possible to do.

[#ditto]

Pelle, you ARE da' man. No, really, you are.

Robert

[bcammack]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Soeeborg

Thanks for the kind words. I am overwhelmed by the positive response. There are more photos on my web site www.soeeborg.dk - go to "Model making" and click on the links "photos" and "hobby".

I'm glad that I have the opportunity to congratulate you directly on just how well you captured the essence of that area. I graduated from high school in Boron, California and visited my aunt who lived in Mojave from time to time as well.

The only niggle I spotted, and it's really a coin-toss, was the A/C unit on the mobile home. Unless they've fallen out of favor the past thirty years, it would more likely (say a 75% likelihood) have an evaporative ("swamp cooler") cooling unit mounted in that location or atop the roof. It would be a cube (say 3 feet in each dimension) with rounded edges and corners, galvenized with louvered side panels. Brown jute mats would be visible through the louvers and there would be hard-water stains around the bottom where the water pan is. A window/wall mount unit would be sitting on a frame constructed of 2x4s or 2x6s.

In such an arid climate, the evaporative units are more effective and much cheaper to run while having the benefit of having a humidifying effect on the air in the building.

Other than that, you nailed the area beautifully!

[BRVRR]

Pelle,[#welcome]
Loved the track laying article of a few MR issues ago. The new layout is marvelous! Thank you for showing us how a 'professional' does things.

[canazar]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Soeeborg

Thanks for the kind words. I am overwhelmed by the positive response. There are more photos on my web site www.soeeborg.dk - go to "Model making" and click on the links "photos" and "hobby".

Pelle

Pelle,

I have to second Dave's comments about thank you for shareing. I am glad you posted the link to the webpage you have so we can see more of your work. Some of the pictures you had up of your professional work is just amazing. Proffesional[:D] is the only way to desrcibe it.

Since you have joined this forum (Glad you did) I have to thank you for your article you did (oh about6 months ago maybe?) about laying "Perfect Track Work." in the MR magazine. That article came out just in time when I was laying mine and it helped ansewer alot of questions that I had. And yes, I got pretty good trackwork. [8D] Thanks for your tips and comments. That is an article I will keep handy for years and years to come.

Best Regards
John Kanicsar

[gvdobler]

He said his secret is "just enoough detail to make it look right."

That must be my problem. I use wayyy tooo much detail.

Jon - Las Vegas

[davekelly]

No, Pelle. I thank you for sharing your accomplishments with us and showing me what is possible to do.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the kind words. I am overwhelmed by the positive response. There are more photos on my web site www.soeeborg.dk - go to "Model making" and click on the links "photos" and "hobby".

Pelle

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by brothaslide

I was very impressed with Pelle Soeborg's new layout featured in the March issue of MR. He is a true craftsman.

Pelle and Erik Brooman are my two favtorite modelers. Both of their work inspires me to press on with model railraoding.

Take care,

I looked at the pictures of his layout and realized that was Mojave before I read the article. He has named it Daneville, but it is modeled after Mojave. HIs pictures are always great and are interesting. I visited Sweden about ten years ago and his country is a great place to see. I found out Pelle was from Denmark. Sorry.
Pelle, if you are a member of this forum or read it occasionally, we salute you and thank you for your efforts.

I wanted to turn left and fill up with ARCO when I saw it.

[Anonymous]

Pelle is from Denmark and comes once a year to visit with me and we travel all over the country photographing trains. We spent an entire day in Mojave filming every angle of the various buildings which Pelle scratch built. It has been my pleasure to travel with him every year for over 10 years and watch the master at work. Yes, he has been to Mojave many other times for a stop over or train watching but he spent most of his time in the Tehachapi Mountains , especially Caliente. And yes, you can only appreciate the beauty of his layout by seeing it in person........Pelle, see you in June.

[canazar]

One of my neighbors at work (we all have our own shops) came over and i showed him the magazine. He isnt much of a modeler but still likes to look and has respect for the work involved.. Anyways, I showed him the spread and he gets to the spot where you can see dowtonn area with the old station the left. His reply... "Oh my God, I have eaten at that Dennys. And got gas at that ARCO.. Holy ...." He has been there many times himself when goes to Cali. Guess ole' Pelle got it dead on. H[:De thoguht that was pretty cool In fact, he took the mag and showed everyone our complex. [:D] Great Job Pelle

[Anonymous]

Pelle, if you're out there, how is the Sweden USA model railroading scene?

[davekelly]

I think Model Railroader is playing a joke on us. Pelle must live in Mojave. There's just no way that he could do what he did after maybe a few visits and some photos. Either that or Pelle is one of the top modelers of our day. Hmmmmm.

[Anonymous]

I particularly liked the AM/PM model on his layout. It looks almost exactly like the one in Mojave. I couldn't see it too clearly in the magazine, but from what I could see, it was pretty much dead on. I liked the way the canopy angles across the property and is not perpendicular to the property lines. That feature matches the prototype almost exactly. Now if only he could get the Mojave airport on there with all those old L-1011s and the Rutan Spaceship One! Having grown up going through Mojave on a regular basis and having even worked there on several occasions, I must commend Mr. Soeborg on his ability to capture the feeling of this town. Even though he is in Denmark, there is no doubt in my mind that he has frequented Mojave, and may well have lived in the area at one time. Either that, or he took waaaaaay too many pictures when he did visit!!! [:D][:D][:D]

[Anonymous]

Cool - the local hobby shop got the magazine in finally.

Read it during breaks in the superbowl. Good stuff!!!

I think I got a sunburn just by looking at his model railroad version of Mojave! Very impressive, once again.

I find it refreshing that again, on his 2nd layout that's made it to MR, he didn't jam it full of track. The track plan is surprisingly simple once again also. I'm guessing the simplicity could be a key to his layouts success and his stick-to-it-ness.

He's making me think about simplicity when I finally get around to building my first layout in 15 or so years.

I also find it interesting that he's an artist. I think artists have an upper hand when it comes to model railroading. They aren't likely to slap off-the-shelf stuff right onto their layout without making things look right.

Hats off to Pelle - what a fine job!!!

[Anonymous]

I agree. I loved the layout!

[twhite]

I definitely agree, Pelle's layout is just stunning! As a fairly frequent visitor to the Mojave area, he's captured the feel and look of the place superbly, I could almost smell the dust. And frankly, for someone who says he isn't into detailing, he could give me lessons on how NOT to detail and have it turn out like that, anytime he wants. Really superb craftsmanship. I'd really be interested in a video or DVD of an operating session.
Tom

[atsf_arizona]

I agree too, Pelle's modeling, photography, and writing is top-notch.

Pelle, if you're out there, how is the Sweden USA model railroading scene?

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by CARRfan

Wasn't his previous layout featured in Great MR's a couple years ago?

That layout was similar to the descriptions I've read above - relatively sparse, yet very realistic. I believe he mentioned he was going to build a larger layout soon. This must be it.

I would feel the temperature rise just looking at his pics - made me feel like I was in Mojave.

In fact, I think I may have eaten at the McDonald's that was on that layout. That guy has Southern California down!!!

Borders didn't have the new MR yet. Argghh!

I have to correct myself here - his previous layout was featured in MR, March 1998. (have the article scanned into my computer - went through my MR's a few months ago, scanned in my favorites - this one was definately a keeper!)

I still haven't gotten the new MR yet. No stores have it yet!

[davekelly]

Philnrunt,

I agree that Howard's marine models are fantastic also!

This issue is probably the issue that I've enjoyed the most in the last few years (I didn't say the greatest issue because everyone has their own opinion of that depending on where their interests lie).